From Book to Shirts

Hi all!
Sorry I haven't blogged in a while.  Between the death of my beloved Opu, Super Storm Sandy destroying my parents' house and my father-in-law becoming ill right before Christmas, things have been crazy-busy around here.

The death of Opu, my first baby and a black labrador retriever in September, didn't only greatly sadden me, but also my children.  Funny, but it was my three year old son, Owen, who wanted me to bring him home from Kevin's house (clearly didn't understand that I was saying that Opu was in "Heaven" and instead that he was at Kevin's house in the clouds).

This was the genesis of my idea of putting "Opu" on a shirt for my children.  It was much harder and easier than I thought it would be.  I hadn't sewn since Home Economics class in Junior High and let's just say that anyone who knows me knows that I cannot draw.  However, I strongly believe in the age-old saying that if there is a will there is a way and well...I found a way to make the shirts for my kids.  I have gotten so much joy out of creating the shirts and positive feedback from people that I decided to open an Etsy shop.  We'll see what comes of it, but I've definitely have had fun making, not only the Opu shirt, but also the pirate ship, hammerhead shark and butterfly for my kids.

Here is a link to my shop KooCoo Say, if you would like to look at or purchase a shirt.

The name comes from my kids' favorite saying, "Koo Coo Sock."  Brian and I don't know where they got it from, but basically if you are being silly, they will call you a "Koo Coo Sock!"

My kids are giving me multiple requests each day, so by the end of the week I'll should also have a tiger, flower, whale and octopus up on Etsy.

I wish you all the best,
Laura

New Hope for Infertile Couples

An Embryoscope is a new device that is helping doctors deal with especially challenging issues of infertility.  It allows doctors to monitor an embryo's growth, almost minute by minute. And in doing so, help them select the best candidates for successful invitro fertilization.  It is similar to a high tech incubator and time lapse camera that captures the beginning of life.

Dr. Nina Desai, of the Cleveland Clinic explains, "Imagine you're able to see every minute of the embryo's development even before it's transferred to the uterus, before it implants on the uterine wall you're able to see this embryo. It’s never been possible before."  

Traditionally, Doctor Desai takes an embryo out of the incubator once a day to look at it under a microscope. but a lot can happen that she'd miss.  The Embryoscope keeps the embryos in a safe and stable environment and tracks every second.  That gives doctors an even better chance to catch even the most subtle changes.  

Dr. Desai continues, “It's a wealth of information we're learning so much that we hadn't realized happens to an embryo as it grows so we are just blown away by this, it's an amazing, amazing technology.  When pointed out, the ones that were growing well were definitely different from ones that were sort of stuck."

Here is a link to the full article.

My book, Five Strands of Hope, is available here on Amazon.  It is a memoir about my journey through secondary infertility through a horrendous triplet pregnancy.